The old blog is staying right where it is, for archival reasons, so please update your links!]]>Blog Softwarehttp://www.deadonque.com/blog/index.php?entry=entry091130-112719
I need something that I can host myself, and has solid media embedding, Youtube, Vimeo, Pictures, etc.

If anyone has some suggestions, I would be glad to hear them! Of course, if I find something really awesome in my research, you'll be the first to hear about it!]]>This is not a disapearing act.http://www.deadonque.com/blog/index.php?entry=entry091024-131837

She was born October 1st, 2009. 7lbs 9oz, 21 inches long. Took a couple of weeks off from work and just about everything else, only to discover getting back in the saddle is really hard! Sometimes you need a helping hand, or a slap of pure motivation. Such as this e-mail I got this morning from the Machinima Expo (coming up Nov 22!!!) asking me to Scope this page for anything familiar.

So with that, I'm positively thrilled to announce that Rise will be screened at the Expo! I hope to see you there!]]>Buddy’s Month with Torque 3Dhttp://www.deadonque.com/blog/index.php?entry=entry090903-223736
Times have changed.

Torque not only now has the abilities to rival Crysis and Unreal 3 graphically, but importing assets 2d, 3d, and moving, is easy as hitting file-save. The engine instantly converts your standard collada 3D files (.DAE) into a game-ready format, complete with animations. (It includes a tool to help you organize them as well!)

So, we’ve got real-time lights and shadows, art that can be instantly updated in-game as you hit save in Photoshop, and a super machinima friendly license. Not a shabby deal, right?

Well there are TWO major caveats to contend with. First, is the most obvious: If you want all the fancy features and the source code you have to pony up 1000 bucks. Not exactly the bargain-bin deal the engine used to be. Sans-source and advance lighting, it will be a more palatable $250, but you really do lose out on some of the engines strongest elements.

Secondly, this is an engine, not a game your building left of. There are very few built in measures to make everything you want possible without some sort of Torque Script or C++ work on your part. If you’re like me, you’ll just figure out a way to trick the viewer with the art, but for the mathematically inclined, you’ll be able to txt-logic your way into anything you need or want.

]]>Open Letterhttp://www.deadonque.com/blog/index.php?entry=entry090814-172303
It would seem you have mistakenly sent a business related electronic mail to a personal friend. While said friend is always happy to hear from you, it may behoove one to be more cautious with the all powerful auto-fill contact list. Attending to, or attempting personal contact at work is often frowned upon in the modern tight-ass work world. It would seem more than a few lawyers got together over a nice tall glass of cool crisp American beer and said, "You know Bob, we should make it to where if slave-wagers try to have fun, you know, even if they accidentally send an email to the wrong Brian, we can ruin their entire lives!" To which Phil from Pennsylvania replied, "Excellent!" Bob was of course quite irate to be shouted over by Phil, and that led to a bar fight of cop called and 3 months of community service proportions. Ahhhh, to be young!]]>Gwenny's Getting BIG!http://www.deadonque.com/blog/index.php?entry=entry090715-233339

And just look at this nonsense. She's gotten a nice grip of her huge 2in foot!

In other news, I finally got around to playing Fallout 3. Steam had a 50% off sale a couple of weekends ago and I slowly waded my way through the wastelands to total and complete victory. Last I checked I had over 9000 positive karma for the Paragon rank. Finished the main quest and putting it aside for now. I might pick up the DLC one of these days, but for now I am quite satisfied with my awesome romp through the wastes of DC. I must say, this game had one of the greatest opening sequences I've ever played. Not just saying that because births are at the fore-front of my thoughts either! Highly, highly recommended.]]>It's a Girl!http://www.deadonque.com/blog/index.php?entry=entry090603-153742

Girl-bits

Toe-bits

Face-bits

More Face-bits

Frankly, I'm stoked. It's even more exciting than that time we told our mothers we loved them from the first MFF awards podium, Makies in hand.]]>Apples, Cupcakes, Pickles, and Ice Water (From Sonic)!http://www.deadonque.com/blog/index.php?entry=entry090529-112600
Thanks to the miracle of modern incompetent taxpayer-run insurance companies, we still don't know what this is, other than it's 5 moths along, and absolutely precious:

We'll be finding out next week, come hell or broken water. Meanwhile, here's a hearty heartbeat:

As for Machinima related oddities, I've been a bit slack on my New Years resolution, but if I had even the slightest inclination of the events to come this year, I never would have made it. To counter-balance things, Mommy-to-be and I made a pact to pick our creative lives back up before the baby is due, and have something to show before we have to settle down again this fall. For me that means having something worth showing in NYC. For her, I think it means having an outline or very rough-draft for the next Great American Novel.

I just printed out 60 pages of storyboard blanks, and am currently modeling the main character for a yet to be announced project. I'm being very careful to keep this one very manageable, frankly I'm more than a bit fed-up with having unfinished projects.]]>On the Awesomeness of Beardshttp://www.deadonque.com/blog/index.php?entry=entry090309-161225
Beards are a symbol of haggard manliness, and both men and women admire them equally. Without a beard, a man can never achieve anything more than just being some guy, or worse, an upstanding citizen. Yikes! Some men grow beards at rates that rival the ebb and flow of passing seconds; (see my father) others like myself require many weeks to acquire proper coverage. As awesome as beards are, sometimes they just need to go, to make way for a better, stronger… a beard that you swear will be keep neat this next go at it (or when it’s time to visit grandmother).

That’s where razors come in. Razors are very sharp slabs of steel that us men scrape across our faces. Of course, this is neither safe nor sane (fashion and taste, not withstanding), and is therefore a perfect pastime for us men! Sometimes, we slice our faces open a tad, but that’s okay! A cut or scrape across the face is good practice for the inevitable slaps or punches we receive as part of the natural course of conversation with women or the police. Plus, they can leave scars, and everyone knows chicks dig scars! Sometimes though, you just want a clean smooth, and hassle free shave; especially if you’re one of those poor saps that has a suit and tie job.

For years, I’ve just used the pseudo-standard Mach 3. They sent it to me on my 18th birthday, a marketing ploy designed to engage my newfound legal manliness. They figured if I used their fancy and awesomely named razor that I would be apt to buy replacement blades for all time. They were pretty much correct in this scheme since it worked! At least until I was able to grow an even beard, discovered the electric beard trimmer, and could maintain a constant haggard for months at time. Sadly, I left this trimmer behind during my last move, and as each week went by, my beard grew more and more unwieldy. Soon, as alluring as it was, and as irresistible as it made me, the beard began to interfere. It had to go, one way or the another.

But alas, where is my Mach 3? I had gone haggard for so long, that I no longer kept up with it. It had slipped away, most likely in a duffle or back pack stuffed in a box… somewhere… Digging in the bathroom yielded a hot-pink item of curiosity. I knew that women needed to shave from time to time, but paid it no mind since they generally keep themselves in a timeless state of lovely that one forgets the hours the take to primp and prune themselves. But here was this tool for shaving, stashed and hidden away on my girlfriend’s side, that I had never seen the likes of. It had 3 blades much like my Mach 3, but the head was wider, and swiveled. It had “comfort” strips to keep the skin smooth and protected from blood-letting nicks. It may have been hot pink and named after a Roman goddess, but it was the only option I had!

And you know something? It was the best, closest, and smoothest shave I have ever had.